Klarinet Archive - Posting 000222.txt from 2010/07

From: Michael Nichols <mrn.clarinet@-----.com>
Subj: Re: [kl] Oboe works on a C clarinet
Date: Wed, 14 Jul 2010 18:36:19 -0400

On Wed, Jul 14, 2010 at 2:44 PM, J W <tjbw0000@-----.com> wrote:
> I think if Handel had access to clarinet players then he would have written the concerto for clarinet in the first place.

Actually, Handel did write a piece for clarinets once--for two
clarinets and horn (corno di caccia, actually). ("Overture" in D --
HMV 424)

I bought a copy once to play with some friends (under the title "Sonata in D").

Handel's clarinet writing in this piece was a bit trumpet-like in
style (which might at first glance suggest that by "clarinet" a small
trumpet or "clarino" was intended), but as written, it would have been
impractical to play on trumpets (or so the editors say--see
http://www.clarinet.org/Anthology1.asp?Anthology=7 for example), so it
is believed to have been written for our favorite woodwind. Colin
Lawson, in "The Early Clarinet," also accepts this work as being
written for the woodwind clarinet (p. 75), as does Eric Hoeprich in
"The Clarinet" (p. 36), who also mentions Handel's writing for C
clarinets in his opera Tamerlano.

Mike
_______________________________________________
Klarinet mailing list
Klarinet@-----.com
To do darn near anything to your subscription, go to:
http://klarinet-list.serve-music.com